Phil English
Background * R, 47, Erie, 814-459-2613, candidate for 3rd district for US House Links * http://www.philenglish.org/ Issues List * Creating Jobs & Opportunity * Ensuring Quality Health Care * Fair Trade * Prescription Drugs *Quality Education *Reforming Government *Retirement Security *Social Security *Tax Relief *Welfare Reform Agriculture and Farming Farming is a time-honored way of life for many in the 3rd Congressional District. I have worked hard in Washington to help give 3rd District farmers the help they need to thrive within their livelihood. In the Spring of 2002, President Bush signed into law the Farm Security and Rural Investment Acts of 2002. I voted in support of this legislation and believe it serves a fundamental guide for the farm and rural related policies in the upcoming years. I have continued to work hard on behalf of the district’s dairy farmers. I remain committed in the fight to help close the current loophole being used by processors to import milk protein concentrates (MPC) and casein to help stimulate our domestic dairy market. A MPC is a milk derivative that is produced by filtering milk to remove lactose, minerals and other ingredients which are then dried leaving a product with high protein content. Produced solely overseas, MPCs enter the United States with virtually no tariff and no volume quota, allowing them to serve as an extremely low-cost alternative to domestic milk. I am a cosponsor of H.R. 1160 – The Milk Import Tariff Equity Act, legislation that would impose tariff-rate quotas on certain MPCs and casein. America was recently confronted with a food safety scare involving bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or “mad cow disease.” I have taken an active concern with the outbreak and serve as a cosponsor for H.R. 3546 – The Tracing and Recalling Agricultural Contamination Act (TRACE). This legislation will authorize the USDA Secretary to establish a system to track meat products from their origins to the grocery store, enabling an easier recall. If passed, consumers will have more confidence in U.S. produced meat products. In another effort to promote food safety among Americans, I serve as the leading Republican cosponsor for The Meat and Poultry Pathogen Reduction and Enforcement Act of 2003 (H.R. 2203), also known as Kevin’s Law, to improve the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) enforcement of food safety standards for meat and poultry. The agricultural community is continuously developing. In an effort to better understand the issues affecting the industry of today, I have joined the Congressional Rural Caucus as well as the Congressional Food Safety Caucus. It is up to Congress to work to protect America’s agricultural community and while I’m here in Washington, I will continue to help preserve the farmlands of Pennsylvania’s 3rd district. Creating Jobs & Opportunity Congress needs to act now to help western Pennsylvania build the vibrant, world-class economy of the next century. Phil English supports economic policies that promote opportunity by creating and protecting good paying jobs. * Tax and fiscal policies that expand growth and hold down interest rates. * Fair trade with a level-playing field for U.S. workers. * Effective export programs to open foreign markets. * Reform federal job training to guarantee our workers have the skills they need to get a good job. * Strengthen small manufacturers by allowing expensing of job-creating capital investments. * Expand Trade Adjustment Assistance for workers displaced by foreign imports. * Streamline the Small Business Administration to give entrepreneurs technical assistance and access to capital. Energy Policy I support strong energy policies based on the following principles: 1. Conservation: a strong society and strong economy must put a premium on the reduction of energy consumption. 2. Energy Independence: America is ultimately at risk if its access to clean, affordable energy is dependent on the say-so of foreign nations. 3. Technology: We must ultimately develop renewable energy resources as an alternative to fossil fuel, with hydrogen based technologies replacing conventional oil based sources. 4. Infrastructure Improvements: To expand our economic capacity, we must be able to quickly produce low cost energy in response to changing conditions. I strongly supported the tax sections of the energy bill that the House produced, limited as they were when we developed them within the Ways & Means Committee. I strongly believe, however, that in the current impasse – with the United States Senate blocking final passage of an energy bill conference report – we have to move toward a more comprehensive approach. If necessary, I would support taking a special session of Congress to develop and submit a comprehensive energy policy. High gasoline prices are a dead drag on the American consumer, acting as the equivalent of a massive tax increase. The way to bring gas prices down is to expand refinery capacity, stimulate domestic production and jawbone our trading partners to eliminate artificial constraints on oil production. High natural gas prices are not only bitterly anti-consumer during the cold winter months in our region, but also a burden on much of nations manufacturing capacity. If we don’t get natural gas prices down, much of America’s chemical production capacity will undoubtedly be forced to move off shore in the next few years. Ensuring Quality Health Care Phil English will continue to advocate market oriented, incremental health care reform that promotes consumer choice. He will fight to preserve the quality of the American health care system meeting the goal of universal access to affordable care. Phil will support: * Full deductibility of Health Insurance for the self-employed. * Quality standards for health care that end abuses such as "drive-through" mastectomies and uncompensated emergency room visits. * Preservation of Medicare and Medicaid. * World Class health care for western Pennsylvania veterans. Fair Trade Congressman English will continue to support and fight for fair trade practices that will level the playing field for American manufacturers. The Congressman is the primary sponsor of the CHINA Act that is designed to impose a tariff on Chinese goods if China refuses to float its currency. Prescription Drugs Congressman English was instrumental in helping pass the very first prescription drug benefit under Medicare. Though not a perfect bill, it is a start to help bring prescription drug costs down to an affordable level so all of America’s seniors can have universal access to affordable prescription drugs. Congressman English will continue to fight for lowering prescription drug costs. Quality Education for All Americans Education is the foundation of our communities. I believe in a strong educational system that includes the cooperation and coordination of parents, teachers, and administrators. In Pennsylvania’s 3rd District there are various colleges and universities that thrive in community involvement and provide students with a strong educational background. I have been working with my colleagues on legislation that will benefit the educational system so our youth may continue to prosper. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act recently celebrated its two year anniversary. In looking back over the short life-span of NCLB, the reforms have proven to be moving in the right direction. I commend Pennsylvania’s swift action on NCLB and am looking forward to improving and building on the reforms laid out in the legislation. Access to higher education for every American who strives to achieve a college education is a priority for me. That’s why I have introduced H.R. 3412 – The Higher Education Affordability and Equity Act. The legislation, which is supported throughout the higher education community, will reduce the tax burden associated with saving and paying for college and offer a generous benefit for students and parents. An education is an investment in the future. We need to encourage the pursuit of higher education and broaden the horizons of our young people. Reforming Government Phil has been a vocal proponent of reform and opponent of government perks throughout his public career. He supports: * Campaign Finance Reform. * Elimination of the special automatic pay raise for Members of Congress. * Repeal of the special tax break for members of Congress. * Congressional pension reform Retirement Security Congress must act to save the Social Security System and to protect the retirement of all workers and retirees. National leadership is needed to build bipartisan support for major reforms of the system to ensure it's financially sound and to allow it to meet its obligations without huge tax increases. As a member of the Ways & Means Committee, English is committed to saving Social Security by: * Establishing a bipartisan national commission to weigh options to restore the system to fiscal soundness. * Protect the independence of the Social Security Trust Fund by removing it from the "unified" federal budget to allow the program to build real assets. * Expand access to private pensions by promoting portable pensions and forbid political manipulation of private pension assets through "social investment" schemes. Social Security Protecting the hard-earned retirement savings of our nation's seniors is extremely important to Phil. Voting not only to save Medicare, but also voting to make it illegal to use Medicare funds for tax cuts, Phil has a strong track record of protecting the investments of our seniors. In addition, he led the fight to protect the Social Security cost of living allowance. Now, Phil is working to make pensions portable and to strengthen the Social Security system. Tax Relief Even with three tax cuts since 2000, federal taxes still consume too much of workers' hard earned paychecks. Within a balanced budget, Phil will continue to fight for middle class tax relief, with priority to: * Ending the "marriage penalty," which imposes higher taxes on many couples after they wed and making the repeal of the estate tax permenant. * Expand access to IRAs. * End the unfair tax on unemployment benefits. * Exempt the first $400 of interest income from taxes. * Expand the income ceiling for the 15% tax bracket. * Establish a $1000 eldercare tax credit for people who care for a senior family member at home. * Oppose all retroactive tax increases. * Require a congressional supermajority in order to raise taxes. Insights English